Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday said sales and profitability for this quarter would climb from last quarter to reach this year’s peak, fueled by strong demand for its main product lines.
“We are positive that sales of cloud-computing applications, optoelectronics and power management segments would increase this quarter, driving the company’s performance to the peak of the year,” Lite-On chief executive officer Warren Chen (陳廣中) told an investors’ conference.
Chen declined to offer financial guidance for this quarter, saying only that profit would increase significantly from last quarter owing to the firm’s efforts in improving efficiency and product mix.
“An operating margin of 4.3 percent last quarter was the highest performance in the past seven quarters. We are certain that the figure is to grow even higher this quarter,” he said.
Chen said the revenue of information technology segment, which contributed 50 percent of its total sales of NT$56 billion (US$1.7 billion) last quarter, is to grow in tandem with clients’ increasing demand for cloud-computing power management systems and casings for high-end servers this quarter.
Power management systems for cloud-computing applications have become one of Lite-On’s main growth drivers in the second half of the year, Chen said, adding that orders are increasing and its customer base is expanding.
“The strong growth in power management systems has alleviated the stress on Lite-On,” he said.
Chen said he is confident that demand for power management systems, high-end casings and networking devices would continue to expand in the foreseeable future.
Revenue from the optoelectronics segment, which accounted for 24 percent of the firm’s total revenue, would be driven by robust demand for high-end camera modules used in smartphones and LED products this quarter, Chen said.
Chen said Lite-On’s strategy is to raise the sales contribution and profitability of the high-end camera module business amid increasing competition in the market.
“We are to focus on supplying high-end and high-quality products, as it is our advantage in the market,” he added.
Despite offering a positive guidance for this quarter, Chen said he remains conservative about the outlook for the first quarter of next year, citing limited visibility for the industry’s outlook.
Last quarter, Lite-On’s net income grew 9 percent annually and 14.68 percent quarterly to NT$1.64 billion.
Earnings per share were NT$0.71, higher than last year’s NT$0.67 per share and the second quarter’s NT$0.62 per share.
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